Los Angeles offers a diversity of accommodation ranging from basic rooms to some of the state's top luxury properties. If you have your own suggestion for LA area hotels, please email dave@pon.net & reference this page in your email. We will consider all recommendations. We have personally stayed at nearly all the properties listed below. And be sure to scroll down to the map at the bottom of this page listing approximate pricing and … [Read more...]
Los Angeles, CA – Comedy Clubs
Los Angeles is home to a number of creative comedy clubs and other "laugh" outlets. We continue to update and add new comedy clubs to this page over time - here are just a few in the Los Angeles area. Comedy & Magic Club is located at 1018 Hermosa Ave in Hermosa Beach. Parking is either on side streets or in a open-air parking lot almost across the street (3 parking meters are available and accept credit cards - you can check how … [Read more...]
Let your Vacation Bloom in Amsterdam!
Ah yes, Amsterdam - the city of tulips, the city of blooming festivals of color and fragrance in the springtime. However, when you travel to Amsterdam, you'll also find a teeming center of finance and culture, rivaling other European capitals. Begun as a tiny fishing village about 1200 AD, Amsterdam has grown into the capital of the Netherlands, the country that is still, today, called "Holland" by many tourists unfamiliar with the fact that … [Read more...]
Going Cal-ing in Ibiza
Every now and then, I'll combine English and Spanish words and come up with something that truly annoys my wife, who happens to be from Spain. These "Spanglish" concoctions are usually pretty cheesy, but I must say that I'm not the only one guilty of this. Spaniards themselves do it. For bungee jumping, for example, they've invented the word puenting combining the ing ending from English with the word "puente" (bridge) in Spanish to form a hybrid … [Read more...]
Cannon Beach
Oregon's coastline is full of secrets: veiled pleasures and surprises, clandestine, deserted beaches and hidden gems peppering the towns in the form of lodgings or eateries. But perhaps the most stunning secret on all of Oregon's coast lies just outside of the art and culture mecca of Cannon Beach, on the north coast. There's a castle a bit south of town, hidden behind the walls of trees just north of the Arch Cape Tunnel. You can become king … [Read more...]
Death Valley, CA – Attractions
Death Valley is the largest national park in the lower 48 states; it houses a diversity of natural and human-made attractions. Based on numerous trips to Death Valley, we recommend at least 4-5 days to have enough time to visit some of the following highlights. However some schedules may not allow that amount of time: One day: we recommend you concentrate your sightseeing efforts near Furnace Creek as many natural attractions are located … [Read more...]
World’s Tallest Buildings – March 2004
World's Tallest Buildings. Currently the tallest building in the world is the Burj Dubai topping out at 818 meters or 2,684 ft. We are still waiting for the first building to top out at 1,000 meters or over, or 3,000 feet or higher! 2. The Shanghai Tower (632 meters) 3. Makkah Clock Royal Tower in Makkah, Saudi Arabia (601 meters) 4. Ping in Shenzhen China (599 meters) 5. Lotte World Tower in Seoul (555 meters) 6. One World Trade Center in … [Read more...]
Catalina, CA – History
Human history on Catalina Island dates from about 7000 BC. The Gabrielino Indians were the first humans to live on the island. Soapstone was plentiful on the island and the natives created bowls and other implements from this rock (and then traded with natives living on the mainland). Juan R. Cabrillo became the first European to set eyes on the island in 1542. In the 1790's the sea otter population suffered tremendously due to the over … [Read more...]
Catalina, CA – Attractions
Airport in the Sky One has to be creative when there is a not a lot of flat space on the island. Such was the case when building the runway for the Airport in the Sky - two mountaintops were flattened and then the resulting debris was pushed together to create a flat 3,000+ foot runway. Not open to commercial aircraft, the airport services private planes and handles the mail delivery for the island. Sometimes an old DC-3 World War II vintage … [Read more...]
Catalina, CA – Nightlife
We have enjoyed drinks at all of the fine establishments listed below. See the restaurant section page of this article for more information on dining options in Avalon. Luau Larry's is located in the heart of Avalon overlooking the bay at 509 Crescent Ave. A tradition among many to stop here, Larry's is an institution on the island. They been located here for over 20 years. They are a bar and they are a restaurant but they are much more then … [Read more...]